What should investors watch out for until the end of 2024? These investment trends can help you plan for all of your investing goals.Jaipur Wealth Management

Cash looks to be the king in 2024, as it continues to be the preferred method of payment in India, with a 15% growth in CAGR in the last seven years—while high-yield savings accounts offer lucrative returns and low-risk investments, such as treasury bills, alike. However, the shutdown of multiple cooperative banks in India in the past year still haunts consumers and investors with concerns about safety over their savings and investments.

During key dates this year, markets experienced volatility surrounding the general election and the Union Budget. The BJP-led government of India in the Union Budget 2024-25 attempted to create a level playing field for investment across asset classes and a healthy investment environment.

Then, news of recessionary fears in the U.S. due to impacts caused by a further economic slowdown and a rise in unemployment created chaos in the global market in the first week of August. At some point, Bitcoin prices—after surged to an all-time high of $73,750 on Mar. 12—fell briefly to a low of $49,121.

By the second week of August, India’s NIFTY and Sensex performed higher by a few notches as the market experienced some stability. NIFTY was up 1.27%, and Sensex was 1.11% higher. So far, it has been good for NIFTY this year, which made a lifetime high at around 25076.50 levels.Surat Wealth Management

The stock market remains the safest bet, at least in terms of returns. Top-performing sectors include insurance, shipbuilding, containers and packaging, alcohol, and healthcare. Underperformers were sectors representing plastic, paper, and construction materials.

The biggest gainers were companies like Infosys, with a market capitalization of INR 6,89,728. In the long term, Infosys delivered returns up to 131.56%. The company topped our list of best value stocks to buy in India for 2024.

The year has also seen a rise in the number of companies filing for an IPO. An initial public offering allows investors to purchase a company’s shares for the first time before they are traded in the stock market. Retail investors can then buy or sell these shares in the secondary market.Pune Stock

Recently, IPOs filed by Akums Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, Ceigall India, and Ola Electric Mobility were completed, raising about INR 255 cr.

“Post-Budget, IPO activity has picked up driven by strong economic fundamentals, government support for entrepreneurship, and a growing interest from domestic investors, especially from Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIB) and Non-Institutional Investors (NII), being oversubscribed 83 times.” Pantomath Capital Advisors said in a statement.

To stay focused on battling high inflation, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has kept the repo rate steady at 6.5%. It has maintained its stance for the ninth consecutive time on Aug. 8. According to the apex bank, India’s headline inflation increased to 5.1% in June 2024 after remaining steady at 4.8% during April and May 2024, primarily driven by the food component.

India’s retail inflation jumped to 5.08% in June from 4.75% in May 2024. So far this year, CPI has hit its highest at 5.10% in January and 5.09% in the following month.

“RBI remains focused on bringing down headline inflation within target range on a sustainable basis. We expect the short-term rate curve will be driven by banking system liquidity as near-term policy rates will likely remain in status quo mode. Current short-term rates offer attractive avenues to investors with near-term investment horizons,” said Amit Somani, Senior Fund Manager-Fixed Income, Tata Asset Management.

Although a high headline number does not bode well for markets, experts say Indian bonds are expected to perform well with a positive impact in the year ahead, especially in the fixed-income market. This is good news for investors, particularly those with a medium- to long-term investment horizon.

Corporate bonds should be a top consideration if you want to strengthen your fixed-income investment in the later year as they can help protect portfolios from interest rate risk. Whether you invest through an exchange-traded fund (ETF), mutual fund, or Sovereign gold bond (SGB), you should find higher yields and lower risk with corporates.

The rise in inflation hasn’t been all bad news. Those with cash stashed at home and declared the source of income in the ITR filing can earn well over 6.25% or higher from high-yielding savings accounts. Remember, allocating the right amount of money to keep in a savings account starts with understanding your expenses.

Still, the RBI is signaling that rates will likely remain unchanged, but even a slight decrease would definitely give investors a boost to make extra cash. Even if rates rise, there’s a high chance that you can earn a fraction of returns in a high-yielding savings account, and you still have savings—which is very cool.New Delhi Stock Exchange

To prepare for the year ahead, investors might want to spread their portfolio across government-backed investment schemes like the Public Provident Fund (PPF), which comes with a sovereign guarantee and returns up to 7.10% annually.

Due to their size and share-price gains, Reliance, Adani, TCS, and Infosys, along with the top 50 to 500 large companies, have dominated the country’s stock market in recent years.

The BSE Sensex declined in mid-July but recovered by the end of the month, signaling volatility and profit-taking by investors. The NIFTY 50 index outperformed the Sensex while the NIFTY 500 declined, highlighting investors’ optimism in large-cap stocks of more established companies over riskier and smaller stocks.

In the remainder of 2024, pay attention to mid-cap stocksJaipur Wealth Management. These stocks invest in midsized companies and have the potential to outperform small-cap and large-cap stocks in the long run. They are considered less volatile than small-cap stocks, though the latter offers the possibility of significant returns as they expand and capture market share.

Personal finance planning begins with knowing your tax liability, as it can help you save money and optimize your resources. Carefully choose from the old or new income tax regime that enables you to reduce your overall tax outgo.

The Income Tax Act 1961 offers various provisions to help you save money while taking advantage of deductions and exemptions from your taxable income.

For instance, taxpayers can claim up to INR 1.5 lakh deduction from investments in the Public Provident Fund (PPF), Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS), Employee Provident Fund (EPF), Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY), etc. Tax planning is essential for those who invest through mutual funds and ETFs.